Africa’s Two Elephant Species Move Closer to Endangered Species Protection

WASHINGTON—(ENEWSPF)–March 15, 2016.  In response to a petition from the Center for Biological Diversity, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today announced that Africa’s elephants may qualify for “endangered” status under the Endangered Species Act and may warrant reclassification as two separate species. These actions would highlight the plight of both species and strengthen protections.

Savannah elephant courtesy Flickr/Bernard Dupont.

African elephants currently are listed as one species under the less-protective “threatened” status. But recent…